In this article, Mehul Sampath, a student of IIM Kozhikode who interned at Vodafone Idea Limited in the Product Management Domain talks about his summer internship experience. Find out about how he prepared for the summer placements, his onboarding process, experiences & what his learnings are during this internship.
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Hi, Tell us about how you got selected for this internship? Take us through the moment you realized you had got the internship.
Prior to the interview, we were asked to submit a creative video resume and I think that's where the fun began for me. The fact that we could be a little unconventional while sitting for one of the most formal processes of a B-School was exciting. With a quirky introduction, I knew humour is where I could shine and made sure to get a smile on the interviewer's face. Post the introduction, a few quick questions were asked on the technical aspects of what the role would entail. I joined the zoom call smiling and exited it smiling knowing I had done well. After a 5-minute wait, I was told I had gotten the internship. I wanted to celebrate my moment of joy and ordered brownies right away because what's a better way to break this news to your parents right?
On joining the company as an intern, how has your onboarding experience been like?
Almost a year of virtual existence has taught us a lot of things. I personally did not have much scepticism of the internship being online and was ready to embrace it the way it was. The onboarding process began almost a week earlier than the induction. It was great of Vi to send us our projects well in advance, which meant I spent quite some time learning about the space I was interning. This also gave us some time to connect with peers who were working on similar projects. The day of induction was super fun, with our Talent Head being super sportive and telling us everything that was planned for us and surprisingly, it was a LOT more than just work. It's a special feeling when the CHRO of the company is welcoming the interns and opening up the conversation to everybody. The next few days were all about connecting with the right people and getting to know people before you can get started with the project.
How has your interaction with the team members and colleagues been like? How will you make sure to leave the best impression on your supervisors by the end of the internship?
Let me start with interaction among the interns first as that makes a crucial part of the internship experience at VIL. Every evening, all the interns huddle up along with the Talent Lead for a fun session to cool off the day. This interaction is accompanied by tiny games and performances by fellow interns. This is also the place where we get our daily challenges resolved and are also introduced to different people from the organisation in surprise visits. One remarkable surprise from the PPO holders from the batch of 2020 where we played "Never have I ever" in an online setting. Most of us ended up revealing more secrets than we should have!
Coming to the interaction with the team I am working with, it started off a little bumpy for the first 2 days. However, the management, including some of those at the senior level were quick to take note of this and resolved this at the earliest. My project guide has been super fun to work with. I think one line that would sum up things so far with everyone I worked with across many different verticals would be that "Nobody said no or was unavailable for help" and this was amazing!
Apart from being sincere and honest with my work, I think the two most important things I want to build are good relationships and confidence. There are times when I might not entirely understand what I am doing but that's a sign of learning, when you need to get out of your comfort zone and do the extra bit of research to level up and become better at that work. Having to work cross-function, it's extremely important to ensure you build good rapport with the people around you. I understand that as an intern, I am going to need a lot of help and that comes easy & efficiently when the person knows you, at least to some extent. By keeping the discussions professional yet ensuring you find those common topics to connect on is how I'm going about it. Building trust starts with being good and sincere at your work. I have kept and will continue to keep communication at all ends clear. If I am expected of something, I'll ensure I deliver it on time or inform much before if there's a possibility of a delay. This builds trust and helps those around rely on me easily. Whether I join the organisation or not, this is what I want to people to remember me for!
Tell us in brief, about the project you are currently working on and how is this project going to help the company?
My project is in the Digital Recharges segment in the Digital function. The objective is to understand the digital recharges space and find out the reasons for low transactions on weekends compared to weekdays. The project scope is quite wide and was narrowed down to focus on few particular segments of the customer and their journey. After the first few weeks of research on the problem statement, a few insights that came out not only helped in understanding the problem statement a little deeper but also presented a few alternate opportunities that the organisation could and should tap on to increase their customer retention and improve the adoption rate. Experimentation is an important part of the project so as to not leave the organisation with just on-paper recommendations but also suggest tested methods that have a strong chance of attaining the objective to the fullest. The project will eventually help the company in increasing revenue and driving the much needed digital payment adoption trend that the country is currently witnessing among its subscribers as well.
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Give us an overview of how you prepared for your summer placement season.
Preparing for summer placements is not an independent activity. It's a part of preparing yourself to be an MBA grad. It starts with getting into the habit of reading. Reading business magazines, news, non-fiction books and anything that can help you broaden your horizon should be made a habit as reading the latest editions just before summers might seem half baked if your answers only touch the surface. Having inculcated this habit early on from the time of IIM interviews, I continued on it.
Summer placements are not very predictable hence it's important to be brushed up on common topics from all the verticals. For this, I used the preparatory material from Vertical Interest Groups of the college. These were concise booklets that had an explanation of the basics of marketing, finance etc. with an example that we can talk about. Since I was regularly updating myself with business news, it became easier to link these topics with the happenings around and gave me more talking points when the situation arose.
While there are enough resources available to pick up on technical knowledge and jargons, the most important part of the summer placement is knowing yourself better than anybody else. I spent most of my time introspecting on the choices I had made in the past and having a justification of why I made them. Just writing down answer to the common HR questions didn't help so I gave mock interviews to my peers. Once I started speaking my answers out loud, I got better clarity on the things I wanted to say. The interviewer is just looking to know you better and it's completely on us how well we show them who we are. Once I had gotten the hang of this small yet powerful understanding, things became much more clearer. I usually like to keep my answers on the fun side so I added a few creative elements to my answers, especially in my introduction, to keep the panelist engaged. I spent some nights just speaking out these HR questions out loud and practicing them because practice makes perfect.
Based on your internship experience till now, what are some necessary skill sets one must be prepared with before starting an internship?
I am not going to mention any hard skills here because those are things one can easily pick up during the first week of the internship. However, if there's any technical skill one should hone, it's MS Excel and PowerPoint. No matter where you intern, these two are going to be super handy.
What's more important is to sharpen one's soft skills before starting the internship. The virtual mode of internship poses a barrier when it comes to smoother communication. Hence, it becomes very important to say a lot in a few words. Ensuring one gets into the habit of speaking the specifics and not beating around the bush will be extremely beneficial. Communication is super important and when one gets into the habit of speaking on point, it becomes easier for the listener to comprehend and not miss out on the key information that is to be shared. Miscommunication during an internship can be dangerous and this will help avoid that.
Next comes, courage and self-confidence. This is not the easiest but being courageous is super important. As an intern, our job is to learn as much as we can while trying to add value to those around us. It's important we step out of our comfort zone, take initiatives and speak up when we have to without fearing what others might think. Everyone's learning on the go and the more courage one shows, the more confidence one will gain. Not just that, when we speak up, others also gain confidence from us and it helps everyone around us at large. Self-doubt is also a common part of the internship experience but to use it to one's benefit is a skill. Self-doubt should only push a person to perform better at work and not pull one down in anyway. More importantly, before beginning your internship, know that you have been chosen because you were deemed fit for this and you've got it in you.
What are some new skills that you have developed while working in the company?
To begin with, a few technical skills that I picked up are Analytical tools like Adobe, Tableau and MS Access. Having participated in a few case competitions, I was already a bit toned in presentation skills and it's only getting better during my stint. However, the more important skills that I have picked up are building trust, relations and instilling confidence.
It was very early I realised that I'll be working across multiple teams. The biggest roadblock that might come is people not being able to give me enough time which slows down my work. It's not easy to repeatedly ask someone for help and that's where I learned that it becomes easy to ask for help when you foster a good relationship with them. In the first few days of interactions with different stakeholders, I worked on building a good relationship. While being professional is at the essence of any internship stint, it helps to have an element of openness in your conversations to get the person to like you. Hereon, it doesn't as much feel like a burden if they have to help and will willingly do so. Next is sincerity. It's important that you trust those and give a chance to others to trust you. I noticed that being sincere at work helps in that. Everyone is very accommodating and would understand if you have any problem and will not be able to deliver. The key is to keep the communication open and let those around you know about the shortcomings you are facing well in advance so it doesn't startle anyone at the last moment. Last but not the least, planning. This is one very important skill that I have developed. Since there will be multiple deliverables during the stint, efficiently planning out the route I'll take to achieve the objectives and leaving space for course correction is a very practical skill to have. These skills are going to stick with me forever.
What are some of the challenges that you have faced in your internship and how have you overcome them?
Internships are all about learning and stepping out of your comfort zone. Having stepped out of my comfort zone, almost everyday poses a new challenge but I'll mention a few notable ones here. We have all heard stories of how interns are often ghosted during their 2 months stint. Right in the first week, I couldn't get hold of my project guide for the first few days and thought my nightmare had become a reality. However, the HR and the function head were super supportive and I was assigned a new project guide. I figured if I had spoken up earlier, things would have sorted out sooner but nevertheless, Imy takeaway was to be quick at my actions and not wait out for the problems to solve itself.
The second wave has hit everyone hard and so was the case with me. With my entire family, including me, down with covid-19 it was extremely exhausting to manage work and home together. I was worried that this might hamper my project deliverable and affect my chances of a PPO. However, my project guide and HR ensured that I focus on my and my family's health first and then worry about work. I lost a good week there and had to pick up from where I left. It was tough to motivate myself to get working with the same energy I had at the beginning. It took extra efforts to get back on track but once I was there, I resumed work in full swing.
During the course o the internship, we had a feedback review with the senior management to ensure that we are all on the right track. to say the least, this was a disaster for me. The direction I had taken and the deliverables I had set out for were not deemed fit by the reviewers and I had to alter my track. This basically I had to take an alternative approach and restart my research. The actionable that I was working on did not very well match the new research I was embarking on which means by the time I finish new research, I'll have no time left for any actionable. This was a setback but my project guide has been supportive all the way and with him, I managed to complete my research and was able to find strong co-relations between my new research and previously carried out actionables. This gave me new insight that I could use for the final recommendations.
Challenges are plenty but they are a part of your work no matter where you work. The whole point of your job is to tackle such challenges and after the feedback review episode, I stopped being scared of the challenges that came along. My first response changed from panicking to instantly start looking for solutions. A slight change in attitude but a huge change in workstyle.
Tell us about a situation where you were complemented by your Manager for your work.
I try to give my best at whatever I do and to be complimented for it only motivates me to do better. There were a couple of instance when my manager really appreciated my work.
The first of it came in the initial days when I had to pick up on Analytics real quick and had a short deadline at hand. Not having worked with Adobe Analytics before, I wasn't sure how I could get myself around the software in 2 days to begin my analysis. However, instead of spending the next 2 days trying to learn the software theoretically or through an online certification, I went the hands-on route. I got hold of the data before hand and started working directly on the data. This was I managed to learn exactly what was needed and eliminating the nuances that I could pick up on a later stage. This impressed him and set a good first image for which he appreciated me.
There's a nice culture at Vi where managers send us a note of appreciation if they like our work. I got mine post my feedback review. The workload had increased since my project sort of took a U-turn but I didn't give up and continued to put in extra efforts. He had really appreciated my presentation skills already and liked my ethic of not sticking on to previous idea/approach and being agile with the feedback. For this, I received a note of appreciation and it helped me pick pace with the new research and stay motivated.
What have been your major learnings during the internship?
Every day has been new learning and apart from learning tons about product management, analytics, UX etc., my major takeaways from the internship are the soft skills that I have picked up along the way.
The first would be to be curious. During the course of the internship, we had workshops on "Learning Agility" and "Curiosity". While learning agility is something extremely important, I believe that is something I had already incorporated in me and knew that you can never get married to one set of ideas, especially in product management. In the beginning, I was a little sceptical about asking a lot of questions but along the way, I started asking more of "How and Why". This helped me understand the landscape in greater depth. I didn't always get an answer but it sends a chain of thoughts in my head as well tho those I questioned. In the process, I learned something new and to give me the answer I was looking for, they also looked up and learned something new. Questioning is not demeaning but a process of learning is one of my biggest learning.
Being helpful to those around you. We hear this a lot but during the internship, I tried to live by it. The virtual setup made it harder for everyone but being helpful to your peers helps a lot. Although there are 35 interns from possibly all corners of the country, it feels like a closed knit group, thanks to the daily huddles(connects) we have. Helping them not only when I was available but taking out time just to help others has shown me the importance of building a good relationship. Whether I come back to work here or not, building good relationships with those around you defines the kind of person I am going to be and be known for. This is something I cherish and will continue to practice no matter how short or long my stint is.
Tell us about your final presentation of the project to your manager in brief. What was the toughest question asked during the presentation and how did you answer it?
My final presentation was a 35 minute long session with the Digital EVP and CDO at VIL. The first 20 minutes were for running them through the entire 2 month project and 15 minutes were for QnA. I had had a few dry runs earlier to ensure everything goes smoothly during the presentation. After listening to me for about 20 minutes began the QnA. I was asked around 4 questions majorly revolving around my project. I had prepared for most of the follow up questions and had also noted possible questions they might have that came up during the dry runs. There was a question in the final recommendations that caught me on my backfoot. The question revolved around the possibility I hadn't considered and was asked to suggest alternatives to tackle it. I did not panic and took a 5 second pause before jumping right into the answer. I had an idea for the second part of the question and started with that. This also gave me some time to think about the first part. Thinking on foot is something I manage well and given that I had spent a good 2 month working around this, I was abe to think of possible solutions but with a disclaimer that its feasibility test needs to be done before running pilots in the direction. I think what helped me most was the pause I took that helped me gather my thoughts and stay composed.
Some advice that you would like to give to your juniors based on your internship experience.
There are some important elements of a summer internship that is common across most domains.
The first thing one should do is truly understand the problem statement. Forget about what the solutions are going to be and just focus on analysing the statement and understanding everything that revolves around it. After having done this, clearly define what is expected of you at the end of the 2 months. This is basically laying out the final deliverable(s) so you can work towards it accordingly. This I believe is the most important aspect.
The second element is towards the soft skills side of it. Try and build good relationships with those around you. Try stepping out of your comfort zone. Do not resist from asking questions because most companies understand that this is new and you are there to learn. This is also an area of networking and a great opportunity for you to win some good friends in the industry not by sweet talk but by actually proving your faith with good work.
So, maintain a balance on both the hard, and soft skills during the internship and be curious to learn as much as you can!
What was one of the best moments according to you during your internship?
My internship was majorly divided into four phases. The first one being the Analysis phase which was about understanding and validating the problem statement. The second phase was primary and secondary research around the problem statement and creating hypotheses.
The third phase was where the action began. It was the experimentation phase where I planned and designed pilot campaigns to test my hypotheses. There was extensive cross-domain communication with the design and marketing team which made me feel a part of the organisation, especially since this was an online setup and interactions were a tad bit scarce. However, after spending a good week working with different teams, the D-day of my first set of campaigns arrived and was sent to over 4 lakh people. I was excited since this was my first actionable and hard work of the previous weeks was right in front of my eyes. At the same time, I was very nervous since this campaign also had the chances of failing. Nevertheless, whatever the result I was sure it'll help me design the next campaigns better and I always knew I could rely on the people at the organisation to help me out.
To sum it all up, watching my first campaign go live was the best moment during my internship!